Monday, June 14, 2010

Flying Wheels

I had a really nice ride this past Saturday on my first Flying Wheels. I opted for for the 65 mile route, as I was feeling iffy about my fitness levels and Rob, my riding companion was sure he wasn't up to it.

After driving around a bit more than necessary to find parking (ended up by OobaTooba), we were off. The forecast was for 77 and sunny and the weather didn't disappoint. Rob and I were both in wool and sweating a bit before we even left the parking lot.

The route was great. Not Too Hilly, plenty of shade, not much traffic and some great scenery. I feel like I could ride it several times a year. In fact, I rode part of it earlier this year as one of the SIR training rides. I just love the quiet routes along the river near Carnation; the Burke Gilman is a great resource, but pales in comparison to that.

I felt great completing the ride, and I think the key difference is how much I ate and drank. I tried hard to get 200 - 250 calories per hour down every hour, along with a bottle of water. I usually make a halfhearted effort to keep up the food intake and it bites me every time around mile 35 or 40. Saturday I had enough energy to chase J down from my office after he blew by me at mile 60 or so.

I also did pretty well on the hills, I was really passing people this time out. Now, I need to work on my overall speed too. Plenty of people I passed looked mighty uncomfortable on their carbon wonder steeds with tiny cassettes and low bars. I wonder how much better they'd feel on a bike like my Salsa or Rob's Riv - or Duncan's 'bent for that matter.

Though I was pretty nervous the night before this ride, things worked out well. Now I think I'm ready for the SIR 100k later this summer.